Earth Sciences Report 1975-08

Earth Sciences Report 1975-08

Coal Resources, Tofield-Donalda Area, Alberta

The Tofield-Donalda area lies between longitudes 111 degrees 30'' and l13 degrees west and latitudes 52 degrees 15'' and 53 degrees 45'' north. Within this area, all bedrock strata dip gently toward the west-southwest. At surface, the marine Bearpaw Formation occupies a narrow band across the area from southeast to northwest, separating areas underlain by the older continental Belly River Formation in the northeast from areas underlain by the younger continental Edmonton Formation in the southwest. Economically significant coal deposits are restricted to the lower part of the Edmonton Formation where a series of large bodies, mostly suitable for large-scale strip mining, extend from Halkirk in the southeast to Tofield in the northwest. Several of the coal bodies are glacially disturbed. The area consists of a flat plain bounded on the northeast and on the west by low but rough uplands of till and glacially disturbed bedrock. Locations and logs of 268 shallow coal testholes and one deep testhole are given.